Bunker operators wary of Indonesian inspection
Bunker operators wary of Indonesian inspection
SINGAPORE (Reuter): Indonesian maritime authorities have
boarded several tankers refueling outside Singapore port limits,
saying the ships were in Indonesia's territorial waters, shipping
sources said on Tuesday.
The boardings -- reported by the Singapore Shipping
Association (SSA) in a circular to members -- prompted some
bunker operators and shipowners in Singapore to cut back the
number of times they refuel close to Indonesian waters, they
said.
"There are some independents who are reluctant to bunker on
the western side. They prefer the eastern side where there is
greater international waters," one bunker industry source said.
Most ship refueling -- or bunkering -- takes place within
Singapore's port waters. But the volume of bunkering outside port
limits has been growing in recent years as a way to avoid port-
related charges.
Bunkering outside port limits does not break any laws, but
means that the trade is not regulated.
Indonesia bans refueling of ships in its waters, unless it is
done in designated refueling ports, the shipping sources said.
They said there were around 10 instances in July when ships
have been boarded by Indonesia authorities near the Nipa
Lighthouse, which is in the narrow stretch of water between
western Singapore and eastern Indonesia.
The sources said the Indonesian authorities alleged that the
ships were in Indonesian waters. The sources said the ships were
in international waters.
They said the SSA informed its members of the incidents in a
July 8 circular, a copy of which was obtained by Reuters.
"This is to inform all members that we have received a fax
from a member informing us that when performing transfer of fuel
oil at "Out Port Limit West" today, both bunkering and receiving
vessels were boarded by the Indonesian Authority," the circular
said.
"There were also attempts made by the authority to arrest both
Captains and to tow both vessels to Indonesia," it said.
The Indonesian office of Sea Communications (SEACOM) was not
immediately available for comment.
But in December last year it issued a notice to shippers to
stop bunkering operations near Nipa Lighthouse in waters it
considered Indonesian.
Bunker industry sources said if such checks persisted, the
amount of refueling that took place outside Singapore would fall,
hurting bunker fuel businesses in Singapore -- the world's
biggest bunkering center.
Offshore refueling has been rising in recent years as a way
for shipowners to avoid Singapore port charges. Savings can
amount to US$2,000 for each refueling stop.
The volume of refueling outside Singapore doubled to about
three million tons in 1996 compared with the previous year,
traders said.
In 1996, vessels calling at Singapore bought 16.9 million
tons of bunker fuel, a three percent drop from a year earlier,
official figures show.